This fight was originally scheduled to take place in February but was postponed as Tyson Fury sustained a facial injury in training, meaning fans have had to wait a little longer for this opportunity to see these two do battle. This fight will give the winner the opportunity to hold all four major heavyweight belts, becoming the first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis back in the year 2000.
The task ahead for both fighters is a daunting one with Fury having a record of 34-0-1 and Usyk currently 21-0. Fury will rely on his unrelenting power and durability as well as his awkwardness and at 6’9’’ he certainly has a height advantage of Usyk. This height advantage is something he has relied on many times before in his career as it allows him to keep his opponent well away from him, allowing him to control the fight. At 278 lbs he is a big man, but despite this, he has been knocked down, most famously by Deontay Wilder a few years back, but has always been able to lift himself up off the floor.
Usyk goes into this match with an undefeated record and holding three of the four aforementioned belts that he won off Anthony Joshua. He cannot match Fury for size but he will surely be far more mobile. He is a different sort of fighter and stands out in the heavyweight arena due to his demeanour, size, speed and skill set.
Strategy
Usyk will have to lean on his in-ring intelligence if he is to get the better of Fury. He will regard himself as the better all round boxer and will certainly say that he is the quicker of the two and, he will argue, also the smarter. He will want to move Fury around as much as possible with the intention of tiring him out, something which will make him more vulnerable later in the fight.
Fury, on the other hand, will surely stick to his well known strengths. These have served him well over the years and when he prepares properly they have never let him down. He has 24 career knockouts so there is no doubting his strength and power and his camp will surely be aware that it would be to his advantage to end the fight as soon as possible.
The fight overall is likely to be all about power, albeit in different ways. Fury will surely just do what he always does and think that his intelligence in the ring combined with his height, weight and strength advantage will be enough to get him over the line. Usyk will also think that sticking to his strengths will work well for him, he will focus on strong punches paired with quick movements in the hope of punishing the ‘Gypsy King’.
Predictions
The unpredictability of this fight is what makes it most interesting. If Fury is able to dominate early on, with Usyk struggling to break through his defences, then he is likely to dictate how the fight will be fought and the chances of a Fury win would greatly increase. However, if Usyk gets his way and is able to dictate the fight himself he is likely to make the battle go on for as long as possible with the result being that we are likely to see Fury start to tire. If that is the case then it is Usyk’s fight to lose. Fury is the bigger, more powerful fighter but he isn’t the better all rounder of the two. He will also need to be fully focused here, something he wasn’t against Francis Ngannou. The chance of him underestimating Usyk as he did Ngannou is unlikely, he just about escaped from that fight with a win and his world title belt. When asked for his opinion on the likely winner, Mike Tyson went for Fury, stating that he would overpower Usyk. Tony Bellow, who was beaten by Usyk in his final professional fight, also believes that Fury has the upper hand but did state that if Usyk was the same size as his opponent, he would beat him. Another former champion, Ricky Hatton, has gone with Usyk though, stating that he believes the Ukrainian’s smaller size is an advantage for him and could hinder Fury. The last unified champion, Lennox Lewis, has backed Fury but did issue a warning that it will need to be a fully focused and properly prepared Fury, anything less than 100% won’t do.
There will be no shock result this time around as a win for either would be ‘expected’ in their own camps. Both are excellent fighters, there is nothing to choose between them in the markets and boxing fans overall can appreciate that both fighters bring a lot to the sport in their own way. An entertaining fight and a good battle is what everyone hopes for with a deserved winner at the end of the night.
The full Friday night card
As expected, Fury versus Usyk is the last fight on the card on Saturday evening with the undercard providing two further title fights. The fight prior to the main event is a battle between Opetaia and Breidis with the winner claiming the vacant IBF cruiserweight title. Prior to that we will be entertained by the IVF Super Featherweight title between Cordina and Cacace.
MAIN EVENT:
Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk
Jai Opetaia vs Mairis Briedis
Joe Cordina vs Anthony Cacace
Agit Kabayel vs Frank Sanchez
Sergey Kovalev vs Robin Sirwan Safar
Mark Chamberlain vs Joshua Oluwaseun Wahab
Last updated: 16.05.24